The restaurant, owned by Raymond Barshay who inked a long-term lease for the city-owned property, was slated to open last summer but the building, constructed in 1964, needed extensive structural repairs.

Barshay also owns the River Grille on the Tomoka in Ormond Beach and co-owns Crabby Joe's Deck & Grill on the Sunglow Pier in Daytona Beach Shores.

Speaking at the Flagler Beach restaurant Wednesday afternoon, Barshay said, "It takes a lot of good people to make something come to life." The new restaurant opened with "exactly 100" employees and a brand new deck overlooking the ocean.

While workers were still putting the finishing touches on some areas of the renovated restaurant, a steady stream of diners flowed in and out Wednesday.

Flagler Beach residents Steve and Cathy Platt stopped by for a late lunch.

"We just drove by and saw the sign," Steve Platt said.

The couple, who lives close to the restaurant near the intersection of State Roads 100 and A1A, said they were impressed with the changes Barshay has made.

"They've improved the view and the layout is better," Platt said.

His wife agreed. "Everything is so new and bright," she said.

Frank Gromling, who owns Ocean Books and Art and Ocean Art Gallery across A1A from the Funky Pelican, has watched the progress of the restaurant construction project with much anticipation.

"I had a cup of coffee there this morning," he said Wednesday afternoon.

Gromling said the restaurant is "a critically important addition to our business opportunity" in Flagler Beach.

"The fact that Barshay has a proven track record and has taken the pains to make a really beautiful restaurant is important to the downtown market and I'm excited about it," Gromling said.

The prospect of the restaurant attracting more people to the downtown area led Gromling to decide to keep his store open later through the end of the week. He said he would consider permanently extending the store's hours on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, "if the traffic bears it."

Flagler Beach City Manager Bruce Campbell is pleased with the restaurant's much anticipated opening.

"It's right in the heart of our downtown corridor," he said. "It just adds to the venue and makes it that much more of a tourist draw."

Campbell said the restaurant should also help draw more attention to the pier, which could help the city in its efforts to raise money for a local matching grant. Campbell made a pitch to Bunnell city commissioners Monday asking for help in raising $67,000 the city needs as part of the local match for pier repairs.

It took two years of negotiations before Barshay and the city inked a 10-year lease in the city-owned space. He'll start by paying $3,000 per month to the city in base rent for the first two years, after which the amount will increase by 3 percent annually.

For his part, Barshay said the process of renovating and repairing the restaurant was tiring but worth the effort.

"I think we fit in really good with what we've got going on here," he said. "It took whatever it took to get it the right way and that's what we did."

Barshay said he knows there are a lot of expectations for the restaurant.

"All we can do is what we do," he said. "Hopefully, we'll meet everybody's expectations. Hopefully after a month or two, we'll have our sea legs and get rolling."

Barshay said he plans on having a grand opening event sometime in the spring.

<p>FLAGLER BEACH &mdash; The wait is over. The Funky Pelican restaurant at the Flagler Beach Pier opened for business Wednesday to an enthusiastic crowd of diners, city officials and local business owners.</p><p>The restaurant, owned by Raymond Barshay who inked a long-term lease for the city-owned property, was slated to open last summer but the building, constructed in 1964, needed extensive structural repairs. </p><p>Barshay also owns the River Grille on the Tomoka in Ormond Beach and co-owns Crabby Joe's Deck & Grill on the Sunglow Pier in Daytona Beach Shores.</p><p>Speaking at the Flagler Beach restaurant Wednesday afternoon, Barshay said, "It takes a lot of good people to make something come to life." The new restaurant opened with "exactly 100" employees and a brand new deck overlooking the ocean.</p><p>While workers were still putting the finishing touches on some areas of the renovated restaurant, a steady stream of diners flowed in and out Wednesday. </p><p>Flagler Beach residents Steve and Cathy Platt stopped by for a late lunch.</p><p>"We just drove by and saw the sign," Steve Platt said. </p><p>The couple, who lives close to the restaurant near the intersection of State Roads 100 and A1A, said they were impressed with the changes Barshay has made.</p><p>"They've improved the view and the layout is better," Platt said.</p><p>His wife agreed. "Everything is so new and bright," she said. </p><p>Frank Gromling, who owns Ocean Books and Art and Ocean Art Gallery across A1A from the Funky Pelican, has watched the progress of the restaurant construction project with much anticipation. </p><p>"I had a cup of coffee there this morning," he said Wednesday afternoon.</p><p>Gromling said the restaurant is "a critically important addition to our business opportunity" in Flagler Beach. </p><p>"The fact that Barshay has a proven track record and has taken the pains to make a really beautiful restaurant is important to the downtown market and I'm excited about it," Gromling said.</p><p>The prospect of the restaurant attracting more people to the downtown area led Gromling to decide to keep his store open later through the end of the week. He said he would consider permanently extending the store's hours on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, "if the traffic bears it."</p><p>Flagler Beach City Manager Bruce Campbell is pleased with the restaurant's much anticipated opening.</p><p>"It's right in the heart of our downtown corridor," he said. "It just adds to the venue and makes it that much more of a tourist draw." </p><p>Campbell said the restaurant should also help draw more attention to the pier, which could help the city in its efforts to raise money for a local matching grant. Campbell made a pitch to Bunnell city commissioners Monday asking for help in raising $67,000 the city needs as part of the local match for pier repairs. </p><p>It took two years of negotiations before Barshay and the city inked a 10-year lease in the city-owned space. He'll start by paying $3,000 per month to the city in base rent for the first two years, after which the amount will increase by 3 percent annually.</p><p>For his part, Barshay said the process of renovating and repairing the restaurant was tiring but worth the effort.</p><p>"I think we fit in really good with what we've got going on here," he said. "It took whatever it took to get it the right way and that's what we did."</p><p>Barshay said he knows there are a lot of expectations for the restaurant.</p><p>"All we can do is what we do," he said. "Hopefully, we'll meet everybody's expectations. Hopefully after a month or two, we'll have our sea legs and get rolling."</p><p>Barshay said he plans on having a grand opening event sometime in the spring.</p>